Spider mites Insecticide?

aleksandras(7 NC)November 18, 2006

I have a miniature rose for few years. All time I was fighting those bugs. I tried different kinds of sprays, but none of it works. I have to prune all the branches and wait for the new ones to grow up. But I tired to do it over and over... I need an advice of a good, really working insecticide. I don't really have a time to spray the plant 3 or 4 times a week with a forceful spray of water.

I just got a new rose that's tender so I got a botanical insecticide made from a chrysanthemum flower thinking that it'll be better for the plant made from Schultz. It's simply called Insect Spray and it's supposed to kill on contact. Sorry no one else has answered you. I'll let you know if it takes care of my problem. Besides this rose that I got with a little unknown green pest chewer I have a hibiscus with a spider mite I'm going to try it on. Leslie

OK, here's the deal. Mites are not insects they are arachnids (like spiders) and insecticides don't work on them. In fact, in the garden, heavy use of insecticides can kill off predators of spider mites and make a spider mite problem worse. If you're not willing to do the water spray or to wash off your plants weekly, then you'll need a miticide.

Diane, the one I got specifically said for spider mites. That's what I was trying...I know spider mites are not spiders. I in particular am only using it on the one I have spider mite on. I have a hibicus with a spider mite and a chewer on a new Gemini of some kind that's not a spider mite. Eating jagged holes on the ends of the roses. little tiny green guy, got the magnify glass out still couldn't see him. Squashed it but don't know if I got them all. Was told on other thread to spray for them. It is a garden spray fungicide. Oh ok first one I said was a Schultz inseciticde, thanks for telling her correctly, and me, I just came back to check.... Leslie

The Neem Oil should work well for mites, as well as other pest problems and to retard the spread of fungal diseases. Just be sure to thoroughly coat the undersides of the leaves. That's where the spider mites do their dirty work.

I had to give up on Neem oil in the summer months because it burned my roses in our summer heat, (badly). Winter is a good time to try it out first.

Some alternatives to Neem would be Avid, available from Rosemania, which is very expensive initially ($99), but lasts forever and a day. If that price makes you choke, you can also use Ortho brand sprays that indicate they kill mites. I think the cans of ready-to-use Rose Pride spray will kill mites (and it's only 5 or 6 bucks). The problem is, as Diane mentioned above, Ortho will kill off many bugs which attack mites. And spider mite populations bounce back very quickly. If you're going to use Ortho, you might try it weekly for maybe 3 weeks to try to break the mites' reproductive cycle, then stop and see if the insect populations can recover. Mites are generally only bad in warm to hot, dry weather conditions. So best not to spray year-round. It would be overkill. Maybe after you've used that miticide a few weeks, switch to blasting with water as often as you can(it's no more time-comsuming than spraying, in my opinion). If you're too busy to do it 3-4 times per week, then weekly is better than nothing.

Anyway, I'm rambling. I hope the Neem oil works well for you, because I think that will do less harm to the predator population than Ortho would. Let us know how it turns out for you. Good Luck!

I'm not sure what Aleks weather has but mine is almost always hot and dry, perfect for spider mites then. What predator does kill a spider mite? Ramble on all you want Mike.... I hate spraying, I would rather nature kill anyways, it's not just the cost but everything warns about using on young roses and young plants and mine are. Leslie

Regarding predators of spider mites, I've forgotten much of what I learned a few years ago, because I found that regular water wanding was simplest and cheapest for controlling spider mites. But there are multiple kinds of preditory mites that work best in varying weather/climate conditions. There are also insects that eat spider mites. I think that includes certain kinds of ladybugs, assasin bugs, and others. Can't recall for sure. But there are many websites that specialize in preditory insects and mites for gardens.
Perssimilis mites (probably miss-spelled) is the preditor I can remember. Some fellow-rosarians around here swear by them. You can order some each year, or, they may re-populate themselves if your climate is favorable. You might check out Hydrogardens.com for good descriptions of various preditors. or try this sitehttp://homeharvest.com/beneinsspidermites.htm

Just remember predators don't usually, if ever, totally wipe out a pest population; they just help to keep it under control. I tried predatory mites for thrips a few years ago, as well as predatory nematodes for the soil, and I did notice a decline in the thrips population, but it never "got rid of" the problem altogether.

For spider mites, I still vote for blasting the suckers with water.

That's all the rambling I've got in me at the moment. I hope its helpful. : )

Thanks, Mike I'll look that up. The only bugs I've ever bought are lady bugs and preying mantis on purpose and set loose. The preying mantis never took up at 4500 feet but there after every summer there were extra waves and clouds of lady bugs in every low spot in the valleys around the hills near the house:) Oops...

The only problem I have with "blasting" with water is the size of my minis, I can spray them off gently but I don't think that will have much effect and hastn't, but then spraying them hasn't either. Meanwhile I have these round holes in the hibiscus and one of the new Merry Gro, the Gemini now also has another problem in addition to what it already had, spider mites....I guess you get what you pay for, just everyone else seemed to get really nice roses. Leslie

I worked on an organic herb farm for a number of years and something we always used for mites and aphids was garlic tea. I've continued to use this on my roses at home and have had good results. I have pets and really hate to use chemicals. My miniatures are in terra cotta pots and get sun the majority of the day. To make a homemade garlic tea, chop three garlic bulbs in a blender with two cups of water. Strain out the solids. Make a spray by diluting 1/4 cup of the tea with 1 gallon of water. Store remainder of concentrate in a plastic container with a loose-fitting lid. Do not use a glass container with a tight lid or the solution will explode. Shake well before each use. Spraying every three days during a nine-day period should solve the problem of thrips or spider mites. Anyways, if nothing else works, that's an idea. Yeah, I type too much, sorry.

Mrscolville, I have the same problem, typing too much:) I always mean to keep my replies short but in trying to make sure I explain it gets away from me! Don't apologise, I like lots of information, the more the better:) I'm going to try your recipe out, thanks for the info and thanks for letting me know not to use glass! I made some chili the other day and happy to have several cloves of garlic left over. See...too much typing also:) Maybe it'll have an added benefit and keep my cats out of the mini rose bed also! I keep threatening to hook the water scarecrow back up.... Leslie

As a preventive for spider mites TRY not to use chemical insecticides...use only as a last resort. Seems like everything is going along OK and then I spray for aphids and the next week I have spider mites. Any time you upset the balance of nature the mites are there to take control. If you have only a few rose bushes water wanding IS THE WAY TO GO. Spider mites build up a resistance to miticides VERY quickly. I haven't had much luck using Neem or Saf-t-cide etc. Since I take care of A LOT of roses I must pull out the big guns. If you think Avid is expensive try pricing some of the others: Florimite, Hexagon or Forbid ($250! for 8 oz.).